Balough
December 13, 2013
A Vermont middle school was wrong to force a student to cover up part of an anti-drug and anti-Bush message on a T-shirt he wore to school because such action interfered with his First Amendment rights to engage in political speech. The front of the T-shirt had the words “George W. Bush, Chicken-Hawk-In-Chief” with a […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
A Missouri statute that regulated advertising for businesses that offer sexually explicit entertainment and material–prohibiting such advertising within one mile of a highway– unconstitutionally restricts commercial speech, a federal appeals court ruled. The court found that the statute as written, as well as interpreted by the trial court, violated the First Amendment. The statute prohibited […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
The National Security Agency’s program to intercept without warrant or judicial approval international telephone calls and internet communications of U.S. citizens violates the U.S. Constitution, a federal district court ruled. The judge found that the secret program–designated “TSP” in the opinion–violates the Separation of Powers doctrine, the First and Fourth Amendments of the Constitution and […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
A Minnesota statute that would fine those under 17 who rent or purchase certain video games has been declared unconstitutional by a U.S. District Court. The Minnesota Restricted Video Games Act was enacted on May 31, 2006. It stated in part that: “[A] person under the age of 17 may not knowingly rent or purchase […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
Attorneys in New Jersey who advertise as “Super Lawyers” and “Best Lawyers in America” are violating that state’s prohibition against comparative advertising and advertising that creates an unjustified expectation about results. The findings on the use of the terms are contained in the recently issued Opinion 39 of the Committee on Attorney Advertising appointed by […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
Pebble Beach (without a golf course in the United Kingdom) cannot be sued in the United States for trademark infringement over its website by Pebble Beach (the one with the golf course in the US). The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals found that as long as Pebble Beach in the UK maintains only a passive […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
Kinderstart.com’s complaint against Google, Inc. for monopolistic practices and unfair competition failed to meet the grade, a trial court has ruled. Kinderstart.com sued Google for attempted monopolization, unfair competition and defamation and libel after the portal was blocked by Google’s page rank. Kinderstart said in 2000 it was “one of the choicest Internet destinations for […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
Motion picture studios can prevent companies from selling “cleaned-up” versions of motion pictures since such editing infringes on the studios’ copyrights. In its ruling, the Colorado District Court rejected establishing a policy to allow such editing to provide “more socially acceptable alternatives to enable families to view the films together, without exposing children to the […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
Comparing your goods to your competitor’s as the difference between dried cream cheese and real Parmigiano is not libelous but saying your competitor’s integrity is the same as the Iraq information officer can be libelous, an Illinois appellate court said. The issue arose over an advertisement in the Chicago Sun-Times by Cosmo’s Designer Direct, Inc. […]
Balough
December 13, 2013
The “fair reporting” privilege for documents filed with a court trumps actual malice as long as the report is an accurate summary of the pleadings, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled. The court said the privilege starts from the time a pleading is filed with the court. There does not have to be any court action […]
